Abanda wins while seeds fall at the National Bank Cup presented by Mazda

First round matches continued on Tuesday at the National Bank Cup presented by Mazda.

In addition to winning her opening doubles match, Françoise Abanda (Montreal, QC) posted an impressive 7-6(7), 6-4 straight sets victory over sixth-seeded German Mona Barthel in her first singles match. This is Abanda’s first main draw triumph in Quebec in three tries. The 19-year-old will face American Jessica Pegula in round two on Thursday.

In the biggest surprise of the day, defending champion Annika Beck of Germany was knocked out in the opening round by Barbora Stefkova 2-6, 7-5, 6-3 after holding a lead of 6-2, 5-2. Stefkova got into the main draw following the withdrawal of Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

Eugenie Bouchard (Montreal, QC) kicked off her tournament in doubles on Tuesday night alongside American Jessica Pegula. The pair was defeated 6-4, 6-4 by Russians Alla Kudryavtseva and Alexandra Panova. Carol Zhao (Richmond Hill, ON) and Jamie Loeb also lost in the first round.

Bouchard will begin her singles campaign on Wednesday night at 7:15 p.m. against Mandy Minella of Luxembourg. Abanda will close the night in doubles with her partner Elena Bovina.